After a 5-year hiatus, the 10th Kuala Lumpur Air Scout Group hosted the “10th KL Campfire 2024” on the 15th of June at the school terrace of Methodist Boys’ Secondary School Kuala Lumpur. It was organised to reignite the scouting spirit and bring back past traditions that had withered during the pandemic. This campfire was open to current scout members, old scouts, teachers and parents, and there were about 120 attendees altogether.

The much-anticipated evening kicked off with us singing the MBSSKL School Song, then followed by the 10th KL Group Song. The traditional campfire opening by the four torch bearers then brought back so much memories to everyone who had witnessed it for many years, all before 2020. It was an eye-opener for many of the young scouts who had only seen it for the first time. Immediately when the bonfire was lighted up, the loud call of Een-Gon-Yama came among the crowd, when a boy scout took the lead and the rest of the scouts resonated along, continued with the usual “First Six Songs” medley. A few conductors guided us to encourage the crowd to sing loudly and in high spirit.

Then, performances such as the ‘Tiger Hunt’ led by the rover scouts, ‘Zulu Dance’ led by the boy scouts and ‘Maori Haka’ led by the senior scouts caught the audiences’ attention. The Tiger Hunt was entertaining and interactive, aiming to hype up the crowd as we rolled out more performances. The Zulu Dance then surprised everyone, as the boy scouts entered the stage gracefully, all dressed up in hand-made garlands, dancing to the familiar tunes of Zulu-Zulu and Rhythm of the Island. Some of the audience joined in the dance and shared a pleasant moment cheering up the crowd. Next up, the fearsome loud chanting of the Maori Haka, paired with rhythmic movements as performed by the senior scouts, again invoked different emotions among the crowd. It was indeed a memorable item, as this war chant was adopted many years ago and passed down across generations, and it stirred up much nostalgia among all the old scouts present. As for the parents, they were amazed at the level of energy and intensity that the boys had put in, much thanks to the effort and hard work throughout the preparations. The sponsor of this campfire, Mr. Chu Tham Sang, also previously a scout leader and teacher in MBSSKL, then shared some campfire memories with the crowd, and performed a number of scout songs that reminded us of the good old scouting days.

Our Assistant Group Scout Leader, Mr. Koon Teck Sing then took the stage to conduct the presentation of awards. Mr. Ho Chee Wah and Mr. Rohan Talalla, both old scouts of 10^th KL from batch ’78 and ’82 respectively, were invited to the stage to receive the Silver Hawk Medal as a commemorative award for their years of contribution and unwavering support to the Group. Our Group Scout Leader, Mr. Choo Yew Kuen also shared words of appreciation to both of them, before awarding them the medals while the crowd cheered on. Souvenirs made by the scouts were then given out to the invited guests of our campfire.

Before we ended the night, everyone stood up and sang our closing songs slowly, wishing everyone goodbye. The campfire came to an end at 2120 hrs, as old scouts went home with their scouting friendship rekindled, and for the new generations of current scouts, a bittersweet scouting experience of overcoming challenges and learning to convert ideas into results. We sure look forward to the next campfire, along with much required improvements.

For more photos of the dinner, please visit :
https://photos.app.goo.gl/cnEeW64VjaAyyo8WA
https://photos.app.goo.gl/LGAsXg6zacZeod1Y7

–
Lim Kenwaye
Senior Scout Troop Historian
Court Of Honour 2024